What Energy Leadership™ Actually Means — and Why It Changed the Way I Coach

5–6 min read · By Marie Carmel, MS.Ed., ACC, CPC, ELI-MP

If you have spent any time on this website, you have probably seen me mention Energy Leadership™. And if you are like many of the women I work with, you may have read those words and thought: that sounds interesting — but what does it actually mean? 

I want to answer that question honestly and directly, because Energy Leadership™ is not a buzzword in my practice. It is the methodology at the center of my coaching work — and understanding what it is (and what it is not) can help you decide whether it might be meaningful for you.

“Leadership challenges are not only about what is happening around you. They are also shaped by how you interpret pressure, respond to stress, use your voice, and navigate difficult moments.”

What Energy Leadership™ Is Not 

It is not about positive thinking. It is not about simply choosing to feel better or reframing everything as an opportunity. It is not a personality test that puts you in a box. 

Energy Leadership™ is a research-backed methodology developed by Bruce D. Schneider and the Institute for Professional Excellence in Coaching (iPEC). It is grounded in the idea that the way we perceive and interpret our experiences — our thoughts, emotions, beliefs, and attitudes — shapes how we lead, communicate, and respond under pressure.

What Energy Leadership™ Actually Is 

At its core, Energy Leadership™ is about understanding the energy you bring to your leadership — and how that energy shifts depending on your circumstances, your stress levels, and the stories you carry about yourself and the world around you. 

Think about the difference between how you lead on a day when you feel clear, grounded, and connected to your purpose — versus how you lead on a day when you are overwhelmed, reactive, or running on empty. The external circumstances might be similar. But the quality of your presence, your communication, and your decision-making are often very different. 

Energy Leadership™ gives us a framework to understand why that happens — and what you can do about it. 

“When you understand how your internal patterns are shaping your leadership, you can begin to shift them — not perfectly, but intentionally.”

The Energy Leadership Index™ Assessment 

One of the most powerful tools in this work is the Energy Leadership Index™ (ELI) — an attitudinal assessment that gives us a clear, data-informed picture of how you currently show up as a leader. In a single debrief conversation, the ELI can help us understand: 

• How you typically perceive and respond to your circumstances — especially under stress • The attitudes and beliefs that may be supporting or limiting your leadership 

• Where your energy tends to get stuck — in reactivity, self-doubt, over-control, or avoidance • What shifts are available to you that could meaningfully change how you lead and communicate 

I have seen the ELI be a genuine turning point for women I work with — not because it tells them something they did not already sense, but because it gives language, clarity, and a starting point to the patterns they have been navigating for years. 

Why This Matters for Emerging Women Leaders in Public Service 

Leadership in public agencies and social service organizations is not simple. The stakes are real. The systems are complex. The pressure is constant. And the support — for you as a leader, not just for the work you are managing — is often in short supply.

In that kind of environment, the patterns that shape your leadership matter enormously. Whether you tend to absorb pressure silently until it becomes burnout. Whether you hold back your voice in high-stakes moments because some part of you still questions whether you belong in the room. Whether your default under stress is to over-control, over-explain, or withdraw. 

Those patterns are not character flaws. They are learned responses. And they can be understood, worked with, and shifted — when you have the right tools and the right support. 

“Energy Leadership™ does not fix you. It helps you understand yourself more fully — so you can lead more intentionally.”

How I Use It in My Coaching 

In my coaching practice, I often begin with the ELI assessment because it gives us a meaningful foundation for everything that follows. Rather than spending our first sessions getting oriented to where you are, we can start with a clear, nuanced picture of how you currently show up — and build from there. 

The assessment is paired with a focused debrief conversation that is honest, grounded, and — in my experience — often deeply clarifying. Clients regularly tell me that the debrief alone helped them name things they had been feeling but could not articulate. 

That clarity is where the real coaching work begins.

Marie Carmel, MS.Ed., ACC, CPC, ELI-MP is a Leadership and Executive Coach and Former Associate Commissioner with more than 30 years of experience in complex public-sector systems. She helps emerging women leaders in public agencies and social service organizations build confidence, find their voice, and lead with clarity.